La Liga has dropped plans to stage next month’s match between Barcelona and Atlético Madrid in the United States, although the Spanish top flight still plans to host domestic matches abroad in the future.
Miami was designated as the venue for the match, a home match for Barcelona, on December 22, a move that would have caused significant controversy. No major European league has hosted competitive play in the US, although the idea has become normalized in some quarters as clubs chase revenue from their huge global fan bases.
Now La Liga, which needed permission from FIFA, UEFA and the Spanish Football Association to make the move, has accepted that December will be too early to break the norm by staging such a big meeting almost 7,000 kilometers away. The Guardian understands that it is keen to spread its wings abroad, with another attempt likely next season.
La Liga president Javier Tebas has long spoken about his desire to host some league matches abroad, saying in April that this “could happen in the 2025-2026 season”. The North American market is a fertile breeding ground for Spain’s top clubs, but the Premier League in particular faces fierce competition.
Six months ago, FIFA began a review of its policy on playing regular-season matches in overseas territories after reaching a settlement with US-based events promoter Relevent Sports in an antitrust case brought by the company. That case came after FIFA blocked an attempt by La Liga and Relevent to hold a match between Girona and Barcelona in Miami six years ago.
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Any change to FIFA’s rules would leave the door wide open for La Liga, or any other league, to break with decades of tradition and stage domestic matches abroad. Premier League clubs are also thought to be keeping a close eye on developments, although the English top division insists there are currently no plans to leave.